The present invention relates to connectors for optical fibers, such as are used in the telecommunications industry.
It is well-known in the fiber optic connector art that in order to minimize light transmission losses between mating pairs of optical fibers, it is necessary to precisely laterally align the fibers in a connector. Such alignment is difficult to achieve because of the very small diameters of the fibers. One approach to minimize light transmission losses between optical fibers is to use suitable lenses therebetween. Still another means for coupling optical fibers is the use of reflectors. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,995,935 to McCartney discloses an optical coupler comprising a parabolic reflecting chamber having one optical fiber mounted at the base or the larger end of the chamber with the second optical fiber extending into the interior of the chamber from the opposite concave end thereof. The interior of the chamber is coated with a reflective surface so that light entering the chamber from the first fiber reflects off the surface and impinges upon the outer surface of the outer fiber extending into the chamber. Another optical coupling arrangement is disclosed British Pat. No. 1,017,354 for coupling two fiber optic bundles of different diameters. The coupling element in this arrangement comprises a solid glass parabolic coupler having its surface coated with a reflective material. The larger bundle is positioned adjacent to the larger end of the coupler, while the smaller bundle is positioned adjacent to the opposite smaller end of the coupler.
It is the object of the present invention to provide an improved optical coupling arrangement for single optical fibers.